Joey Devine needs Tommy John surgery again

Just three years after his first ulnar-collateral ligament replacement surgery, A’s reliever Joey Devine had the same procedure again Tuesday.

Devine had struggled with discomfort, particularly in the flexor-tendon area, for more than two years, so Dr. James Andrews decided to take a look at the elbow in an arthroscopic procedure today. What he discovered was some fairly significant damage – along with the torn UCL, Devine had problems with the ulnar nerve, which was essentially buried under scar tissue and had to be moved, and Andrews also debrided the flexor tendon.

Devine will miss at least another 12 months, although his last comeback took more than two years. It’s such a tough situation, the right-hander – who had a remarkable 2008 season – just goes through one thing after another, and so many rounds of rehab.

“It’s brutal for him,” left-hander Dallas Braden told me. “But he and I talked about the idea of getting everything right, and he’s by far not the oldest player to go through this. He’ll definitely be in position to come back from this and find himself back on a major-league mound again.”

A’s trainer Nick Paparesta said that Devine’s youth – he’s 28 – will help and is one reason Andrews was determined to get this injury completely resolved and get Devine back to full health. Andrews did Devine’s first surgery, and he has known Devine since Devine was in the Braves organization. Paparesta said that Andrews was as upset as he’s ever heard him with the orthopedist called Paparesta to fill him in on Devine’s surgeries (arthroscopic and then the full Tommy John surgery) today.

Second Tommy John surgeries are become more frequent; often they’re needed again about 10-11 years after the first one. Jason Isringhausen has had three of them, and he’s still pitching. Pitchers’ UCLs are prone to tears, there’s no way around it. Devine was back and pitching effectively last year – he threw 46 1/3 innings between Oakland and Sacramento, and in his 26 appearances with the A’s, he had a 3.52 ERA and 20 strikeouts, but back trouble cut short his season a bit.

Brett Anderson, who is coming back from Tommy John surgery, said of Devine, “It’s just unfortunate, but at this point, he might as well get it out of the way, clean everything up. It’s a tough process.”

Anderson is doing well in his recovery – he’s on track to be back roughly one year after his July 14 procedure. On Tuesday, Anderson threw his first full bullpen session, 45 pitches, using all his stuff (fastball, curveball, slider) and at the full distance. Catchers had been moving up in front of the plate to catch his breaking stuff before today.

Anderson – soaked after throwing in the rain -told me his fastball is coming out of his hand better than it has in the past year and a half, with very good life. He’s trying to temper his optimism, but he feels great, and that’s the main thing. He’s now at the point where he’s thinking about the quality of his pitches and his command, which is a good sign that he is feeling great physically, but he also has to keep reminding himself that the quality of his stuff isn’t all that important at this point.

I’m told the A’s expect the game to start on time; the tarp is still on the field, but Clay Wood, the head groundskeeper, is meeting with crew chief Jim Joyce to discuss things. The A’s believe there is a window in which to play, and they’re hoping to get in at least five.

If they don’t, it’s likely a doubleheader Wednesday, though the weather isn’t supposed to be much better then or on Thursday, which is an offday for both teams.

UPDATE: It’s 6:45 and the tarp is still on. It takes 30 minutes to prepare the field when it comes off, so there isn’t much chance we’ll start before 7:30 or so.